Volunteer Time off Trends in Texas and Around the U.S.

With Thanksgiving on next weeks calendar, we’re often reminded of gratitude and how we can express it. Many people choose to volunteer as a way to give back when they’re feeling grateful because it’s a way to help those who have less. Houston has made the list of cities where people volunteer the most, according to Americorps. With a good number of major corporations headquartered in Houston, it’s possible the volume of volunteering is because of volunteer time off (VTO).

A growing number of companies across the country are focusing more on developing corporate social responsibility programs (CSR). The benefits of practicing CSR can be significant for those businesses because employees prefer to work for them, stakeholders choose to invest in them, and customers also favor spending money with those brands.

Katie Schmidt, the founder and lead designer of Passion Lilie informed Business News Daily that, “CSR can positively impact your business by improving your company image, building your brand and motivating you as a business owner. What the public thinks of your company is critical to its success. By building a positive image that you believe in, you can make a name for your company as being socially conscious."

From increasing environmental efforts and philanthropy to ethical labor practices and volunteering, there are a variety of CSR categories that businesses can implement. The United Way NCA is dedicated to helping businesses harness the power of social impact. In doing so, they conducted an extensive analysis concerning Volunteer Time Off (VTO) by examining the benefits of 49 top-rated companies to work for to gain more insight into the demographics of VTO programs in the United States.

The study indicated that professional services, informational technology and financial services and insurance are the most popular industries regarding VTO policies. It also found that each employee is allotted approximately 20 hours per year off work to volunteer.

If you’re wondering where volunteering is offered the most, then here are some of the top states and organizations:

• California-San Diego is ranked #6 on the list of cities that volunteer the most. Google, Intuit and Autodesk are a few of the companies with headquarters in this state that offer their employees generous VTO benefits. Google bolstered its human-focused philanthropy efforts by announcing that it will pay employees for six months of charity work.
• New York-American Express and Goldman Sachs have exceptional VTO policies. According to its website, American Express encourages their colleagues to be active members in their communities by providing them with numerous company-sponsored community projects.
• Missouri-Build-a-Bear Workshop, Edward Jones and World Wide Technology are all based in this state. Financial Services and Insurance corporation Edward Jones is no stranger to Fortune magazine’s list of the 50 Best Workplaces for Charity and Volunteering.
• Texas-27% of Austin’s population volunteers at nonprofits weekly. Based in Dallas, TX, AT&T is renown for its corporate social responsibility programs.
• Camden Property Trust and David Weekley Homes are offering VTO the most of any company in the city of Houston.

If you’re looking to volunteer this holiday season in the Houston area, you can find out more about our community needs here: https://www.volunteerhou.org/need